Great Leadership ≠ Chaos

It’s time we take a step back from what we’ve been told leadership needs to look like.

I for one, have grown tired of the ‘win at all costs,’ ‘sacrifice whatever it takes,’ ‘chaos, stress, and overwhelm are necessary’ narrative.

What if I told you there was a better way?

What if I said that you could embrace calmness, respect balance and foster a positive environment in your work life, within your family, friendships, etc.?

Would you believe me?

Or would you stick with the constant narrative that hustle culture would have us all believe?

See, I firmly believe in a world in which we can have it all.

The problem is, most people think they need to kill themselves in the name of progress but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

So, if you want to learn how to be the leader you want to be without running yourself into the ground, I’m here to help.

Let’s rock.

1. Embrace the calm.

At some point, we started replacing progress with chaos.

We have begun to believe the lie that the more stress we can endure, the better.

The longer the hours we can work, the more valuable we are.

The more ridiculous expectations we can create, the faster growth will come.

None of this could be any further from the truth.

The problem is, as leaders, we’re often the ones who put all of the above on ourselves.

And contrary to popular belief, it’s more than possible to achieve a high level of productivity out of yourself and others without the immense pressure we’ve been fooled to believe it comes with.

What I’ve found is that when you operate within a calm environment, you create a much more sustainable level of productivity.

Not only are you much more efficient in the long-term, but you’ll likely also find that you’ll do better work as well.

2. Show a little respect…to balance.

If you’re anything like me, you’re definitely superhuman.

The world’s greatest superheroes can’t hold a candle to you, right?

Wrong.

We are all human.

And just like any human, we are not immune to the basic things that every human needs.

Rest.

Play.

Sleep.

Fun.

This is something that’s taken me SUCH a long time to come around to…

…And I still struggle with it often.

In fact, I absolutely hate that my body forces me to sleep. It feels like such a waste of time. I enjoy it when it happens. I’m just not a fan of the fact that I am forced to do it whether I want to or not.

But, I’m grateful that if nothing else, my body will remind me when it’s time to rest.

It’s about time that we stop taking ourselves so seriously.

Stop feeling guilty that you’re enjoying your life.

Start being a kid again. Start dreaming every once in a while. Start embracing the moments as you’re in them.

Truly successful leaders learn to not take themselves so seriously.

If you’re not taking time to kick back and have a little fun, the journey to become the best version of yourself will likely just leave you feeling burned out.

You deserve better than that.

Those you’re responsible for leading deserve better, too.

3. Stop working so much.

He who works the longest hours and is available 24/7 is not to be celebrated.

All that communicates is that you’re likely inefficient and poor at prioritization.

Trust me when I say I am preaching to the choir on this one.

A younger, less experienced version of myself, once believed that the more hours I put in, the more valuable I was.

Lol.

I mean, think about it…

If we work anywhere from 8-10 hours per day, 5 days per week, that should be more than enough time to pour into work.

At some point, we’re getting diminishing returns anyway if we’re honest.

Outside of that, some of my best ideas and innovations often come when I’m unplugged, enjoying my life and seeing things through a different lens.

The key, I’ve found, is that when I’m at work, I’m all in. I’m leaving it all on the field and leveraging the time I am spending in the most useful way I possibly can.

The value you bring to the table should not be tied to the number of hours you put in.

4. Learn how to use the word no.

I know. Crazy concept, right?

There’s a quote I love that states: “a lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine.”

I love that.

Saying no is a perfectly acceptable answer.

And learning what to say no to is the hack.

When things feel chaotic, knowing what to say no to is way more important than knowing what to say yes to.

If you want to feel less overwhelmed, add more time to your day and reduce the chaos in your life, aggressively pursue what to say no to, stop doing, or outsource somewhere else.

Saying yes to everything does not make you a good leader.

Setting yourself and those around you up for success is what will breed success in the long-term.

5. Breed positivity.

Dave Ramsey has a phrase that has always made me laugh.

He says “when Eeyore becomes your spirit animal, you’ve lost hope.”

That couldn’t be more true.

I just can’t get ahead.

I’m never going to be good enough.

It’s impossible to figure this out.

We’re definitely not gonna find a way out of this.

Garbage.

Staying stuck in negativity is never good for anyone involved.

Problems still exist whether we choose to be stressed about them or not.

Issues don’t magically solve themselves because we’re choosing to be down on ourselves.

Find the opportunities in the challenges.

Chase the silver lining.

Embrace the fun in tackling something difficult.

When you ooze positivity, good things come your way and others tend to follow suit.

6. Improvement always.

If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready.

When we choose to embrace continuous improvement, we often get to avoid the rushed fire drills of life, business, and leadership.

Having a growth mindset is essential to great leadership.

You can do hard things.

You are worthy.

You wouldn’t be where you are if you weren’t.

And what a shame it would be if you sold yourself short and stopped growing now.

A sign of a great leader is that of a lifelong learner.

A lifelong learner is a lifelong improver.

It is so crucial that we embrace the fact that no matter where we’re at in the journey, there’s always a long way to go and when you commit to improving at all times, you’re concurrently making things better for those around you at all times and lowering the level of chaos that exists.

TL;DR

1. Allow yourself to embrace calm. It doesn’t make you weak and it doesn’t mean you aren’t successful because things aren’t stressful.

2. Find balance in life. It’s ok to smile, have fun, and chase your smile. You’ll be so much better for it.

3. You are not a machine. Stop working like one.

4. ‘No’ is a perfectly acceptable answer.

5. Stay positive. No one needs negativity around.

6. Constantly chase improvement.

That’s all, folks! Be relentless in your pursuit of calming the storms around you and you will be certain to keep walking on solid ground.

See ya next week ✌️